Filipino veterans of World War II will finally—after more than 70 years—receive their Congressional Gold Medal

A World War II poster created by Filipino artist Manuel Rey Isip in New York City during the war. Some 15,000 copies were smuggled into the Philippines after the islands fell to the Japanese, to bolster the resistance.

Tuesday, March 21, 2017, found me in Washington, D.C., attending my ninth meeting as a member of the Citizens Coinage Advisory Committee since I joined the group in February 2016. Every meeting of the CCAC is a remarkable experience, but on a personal level, for me and my family, this particular one had special significance. I feel honored to have been part of it.

One of our main agenda items was to meet with representatives of the Filipino Veterans Recognition and Education Project (www.FilVetREP.org) and discuss an important project. After more than 70 years, Filipino veterans of World War II will be recognized by the United States with a Congressional Gold Medal. This is a symbolic gesture—a single gold medal will be minted, to be deposited for posterity in the Smithsonian—and it comes after several generations of Filipinos have struggled for official recognition of their wartime service.

“The Filipino WWII soldiers accomplished their mission to protect our freedom. We must now do our mission to support them.” This is the stated goal of FilVetREP. The group quotes the U.S. Army soldier’s creed:

I am a warrior and member of the team.
I will always place the mission first.
I will never accept defeat.
I will never quit.
I will never leave a fallen comrade.

More than 260,000 Filipinos in the islands and from the United States volunteered and served in the U.S. military during World War II. Nearly 60,000 of them were killed in action. At the time the Philippines was a commonwealth of the United States. President Franklin Roosevelt and Congress promised a simplified naturalization to U.S. citizenship and regular military benefits for those who served. Filipino resistance to the Japanese invasion, and subsequent guerrilla fighting to oppose the occupiers, helped win the war for the Allies in the Pacific Theater. Unfortunately, after the war Congress revoked its promises by passing the 1946 Rescission Act. This act declared that the Filipinos’ participation in the war was not considered “active military service,” and it retroactively annulled their rights, privileges, and benefits as veterans.

Individuals and groups petitioned Congress for many years after the war, seeking to overturn the Rescission Act and gain recognition for Filipino veterans. The mission of FilVetREP is: “To raise awareness through academic research and public education and obtain national recognition of the Filipino-American WWII soldiers for their wartime service to the United States and Philippines from July 1941 to December 1946.”

In 2009 Congress set aside $198 million to provide lump-sum payments of $9,000 or $15,000 to each surviving Filipino veteran. (Some 16,000 to 18,000 are still alive. Now in their 80s and 90s, an estimated 10 to 15 of them pass away every day.) Back in 1946 Congress had offered a little bit more ($200 million) as “compensation” to the Philippines—on the condition that Filipino veterans forfeit their rights under the G.I. Bill of Rights. The Philippine government refused this offer. Congress’s goal, simply put, was to save money: the value of the veterans’ benefits was estimated at $1 billion, or even more. General Omar Bradley reported to President Harry Truman that it would take $3 billion to fulfill America’s obligations to its Filipino military veterans. That analysis was made in 1946. It would have included death benefits, disability benefits, payments made to orphans and widows, mustering-out pay, on-the-job training for disabled vets, ongoing medical care, burial gratuities, and other benefits normally granted to U.S. military veterans.

In 2015, the Filipino Veterans of World War II Congressional Gold Medal Act finally recognized the dedicated service of these vets—long after many of them had passed away. “The United States remains forever indebted to the bravery, valor, and dedication that the Filipino Veterans of World War II displayed,” Congress stated in the text of the Act. “Their commitment and sacrifice demonstrates a highly uncommon and commendable sense of patriotism and honor.”

The Citizens Coinage Advisory Committee

Retired Major General Antonio Teguba, chairman of the Filipino Veterans Recognition and Education Project.

How is the Citizens Coinage Advisory Committee involved in this overdue recognition? The CCAC is a congressionally established public committee that advises the secretary of the Treasury on designs and themes for U.S. coins and medals. The scope of this mandate includes Congressional Gold Medals, our legislature’s highest expression of national appreciation for distinguished achievements and contributions.

Congressional Gold Medal bills are approved by both the House of Representatives and the Senate, then signed into law by the president. The bill for the Filipino veterans’ Congressional Gold Medal was signed by President Barack Obama. Then, officials of the United States Mint met with the sponsors of the authorizing legislation and members of FilVetREP to begin discussion of possible designs for the medal.

I had a chance to speak with Major General (ret.) Antonio Taguba before the part of our CCAC meeting that focused on the Filipino Veterans of World War II Congressional Gold Medal. (This was the second item on our agenda, following several hours reviewing World War I armed forces medals.) General Taguba was the second officer of Filipino heritage to attain the rank of general in the U.S. Army. He serves as chairman of the Filipino Veterans Recognition and Education Project. He was accompanied by the group’s general counsel, Erick Soriano; executive secretary Jon Melegrito; Marie Blanco, chief of staff of Senator Daniel Inouye; and Craig Shimizu, staffer for Congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard. We had a nice chat and General Taguba updated me on his group’s fundraising efforts and record-gathering. They plan to purchase bronze duplicates of the Congressional Gold Medal to present to surviving veterans and to the families of those who have passed.

Addressing the committee, General Taguba spoke about the history of the war, President Roosevelt’s mobilization of the Philippines starting in July 1941, the actions of Filipino soldiers and guerrillas, and the 1946 Rescission Act. He then showed us a short version of the video documentary “Duty to Country,” narrated by Joe Mantegna, which can be seen online at www.FilVetREP.org.

My Personal Connection to the Filipino Veterans of World War II

Grandfather-in-law Teofilo R. Rojas Sr. in 1929, as a graduating Doctor of Dental Surgery, University of the Philippines, Manila.

Circa 1941, as an officer of the Philippine Constabulary, which became part of the USAFFE.

During a committee recess I gave greetings to General Taguba from my mother-in-law, whom he had met before. Her father was a Filipino veteran of World War II, and she is active in education and recognition efforts. He knew in advance that I would be reading a letter from her into the record of the committee’s meeting.

I explained to the committee that this subject is an important and very emotional one for the Filipino side of my family, and for many other Filipino and American families. The following is my mother-in-law’s statement to the committee. Her father was a doctor before the war, and he joined the United States Army Forces in the Far East (USAFFE) when President Roosevelt ordered its organization in July 1941.

To:
The Members of the Citizens Coinage Advisory Committee, Washington, D.C.

As the sole survivor of the immediate family of Major Teofilo Rino Rojas, I wish to express our gratitude to the CCAC and the United States Mint for your important participation toward the design of the long-deserved Congressional Gold Medal of recognition for the Filipino veterans of World War II. It is a bitter-sweet victory to finally anticipate this gesture of respect and honor for those who served and died, after waiting almost 75 years for the approval of the United States Congress.

My late mother Rosario, brother Teofilo Jr., and I suffered also the rigors and dangers of the war, and the painful memories are still clear in my mind. My sister Vicenta was born in 1945 in a hut in the marshes far from the edges of the Maguindanao River in the province of Cotabato in Mindanao, the southernmost island of the Philippines, as we fled farther and farther away from the pursuing Japanese armies that patrolled even in the dead of night. Daddy was imprisoned in a concentration camp in Malaybalay, Bukidnon, a mountainous province in central Mindanao, far from us. After the Liberation our dad reverted to civilian life from his military service, as he requested to return to his private clinical practice as a dental surgeon. My younger brother Cornelio was born in 1950. Sadly, all of my family members are now gone and I am alone to savor a tinge of hope for a long-awaited glory for my father, who went through immeasurable danger. The wartime distress and injury that lingered on through the rest of his life necessitated his trips for medical exams and hospitalization at the Veterans’ Memorial Medical Center in Quezon City, Luzon, where he died in 1988. His casket was draped with the American flag. His veteran buddies had often convened in meetings at our home to plan measures to address their needs to the United States government. Over the years their lights also were dimmed, in death or terminal illness.

How proudly my dad would have stood in his military stance were he around to receive personally this medal. Surely a tear would be shed—a moment to crown his service as a member of the Medical Corps of the United States Army Forces in the Far East! As an orphan and a widow, 81 years plus in age come that awarding ceremony, I shall be a forlorn figure, hopefully still able to receive on his behalf the bronze duplicate of the coveted Congressional Gold Medal in my trembling hands, with prayerful thanks.

Dr. Erlinda Rojas Santos, daughter of Major Teofilo Rino Rojas

It was difficult for me to read this letter without being overcome with emotion, knowing the history of this part of the war and the Rescission Act of 1946, and the sad way it touched so many lives.

CCAC Discussion of the Medal’s Design

Several CCAC members—all of whom are well educated in American history—remarked that they weren’t aware of this aspect of World War II. The tragic extent of Filipino losses in the Bataan Death March (which killed some 10,000 Filipinos and 700 Americans), the injustice of the Rescission Act, and other stories never entered the mainstream narrative of the war’s history. Committee member Mike Moran noted that his home state of Kentucky’s public schools don’t emphasize or even specifically mention the sacrifice of Filipinos in Bataan.

Committee members described the Congressional Gold Medal as being long overdue.

Erik Jansen asked that the design of the medal take a symbolic approach, featuring “no guns, no soldiers charging hills.” Dr. Herman Viola also recommended that it avoid combat scenes, focusing instead on the richness of Filipino culture. Robert Hoge suggested that the medal show the horror of war juxtaposed with a view of the paradise destroyed by warfare. Donald Scarinci advised the members of FilVetREP to reach consensus amongst themselves on a desired design or two or three, and then to “trust the Mint’s artists and have confidence in their talents.”

Heidi Wastweet encouraged the use of symbolism, and cautioned against trying to include too much detail. “Including one regiment or battle excludes others,” she noted. She also recommended against showcasing the 1946 revocation of the veterans’ rights. “Focus on what they did,” she said, “and not what they were denied.”

Jeanne Stevens-Solmann described this as “an unusually emotional gold medal, and well deserved.” She asked that the Mint’s artists address it “with amazing care,” noting the “huge responsibility to portray what’s happened in the 75 years that have passed with nothing happening.” From a design perspective, she said that “Sometimes the text can be the art,” suggesting that lettering in a spiral or other artful form, as part of the design, can be used to represent life.

Mike Moran suggested that the medal should focus on the individual aspect of the war. My own suggestion was to show a young Filipino soldier in 1941, at the time that President Roosevelt activated the USAFFE, and the same soldier, much older now and finally recognized by Congress, in 2016.

Next Steps for the Congressional Gold Medal

General Taguba and his colleagues from the Filipino Veterans Recognition and Education Project heard our committee’s recommendations on designs and concepts. They will discuss ideas internally and come to a consensus on what they’d like to see on the medal. The Mint’s artists will use that guidance to create design proposals (sketches). Some months from now, the Citizens Coinage Advisory Committee and the U.S. Commission of Fine Arts (which also advises on coinage and medal designs) will each review these sketches in conjunction with representatives of FilVetREP.

In practice, by the time a Congressional Gold Medal’s honored organization or sponsoring group decides what designs it wants on its medal, the CCAC will advise only on technical aspects (e.g., if fine details of a design would be too small for minting), rather than on the theme or specific elements used in the design.

After reviewing potential designs, the CCAC and the CFA will each give our formal recommendations to the secretary of the Treasury. He will then make the final decision on the medal’s obverse and reverse designs. The designs will be sculpted by engravers at the Philadelphia Mint, and then struck in gold. The single gold example of the medal will be presented to the Smithsonian Institution for display (and to share with other museums and groups for education), and three-inch bronze examples will be available for purchase by the general public.

While we await the final version of this important and long overdue medal, we can learn more about Filipino veterans of World War II at www.FilVetREP.org. ❑

The Rescission Act certainly sounds like a terrible and unconscionable betrayal. What was the role of Douglas MacArthur? Couldn’t he have used his enormous influence to prevent that? Or was he complicit in it?

@MichaelPrice: “The Rescission Act certainly sounds like a terrible and unconscionable betrayal. What was the role of Douglas MacArthur? Couldn’t he have used his enormous influence to prevent that? Or was he complicit in it?”

The annulment of Filipino veterans’ rights at the end of the war was out of MacArthur’s hands — it was an act of Congress. MacArthur knew how important the Filipino soldiers were. He was the American commander who began forming the Philippines’ independent armed forces in the 1930s, and he commanded the USAFFE when it was organized in 1941. After the Philippines fell to the Japanese, MacArthur benefited from the guerrilla fighters’ intelligence gathering and military action. He described the Filipinos’ wartime service as brave and valiant, and said they saved many American dollars and lives.

President Truman at first refused to support the Act. When pressured by Congress, he finally signed it, but he said that the United States was not released from “its moral obligation to provide for the heroic Philippine veterans who sacrificed so much for the common cause during the war. . . . They fought with gallantry and courage under the most difficult conditions during the recent conflict.”

“Philippine Army veterans are nationals of the United States and will continue in that status until July 4, 1946,” Truman said. “They fought, as American nationals, under the American flag, and under the direction of our military leaders. Their official organization, the Army of the Philippine Commonwealth, was taken into the Armed forces of the United States by executive order of the President of the United States on July 26, 1941. That order has never been revoked or amended. I consider it a moral obligation of the United States to look after the welfare of Philippine Army veterans.”

Interestingly, I got the notification email this afternoon that my two Congratulations sets have shipped. Confirmed that online with the Mint, but my CC hasn’t been pinged. Well, fingers crossed that they will arrive next week via Dumbpost.

@Dennis Tucker: Thanks for responding to my question. But wouldn’t you assume that if MacArthur had denounced the Rescission Act while it was being considered in Congress it would have greatly weakened support for it? Can you imagine it passing if Mac had argued strongly against it? Did Mac issue any statements in that regard?

On 4 April I placed two orders for one “Congratulations Set” each. The first order was numbered USM0498450X and the second order was numbered USM0498559X. Both were initially labeled “Processing” and two 59 dollar charges were put on hold from my credit card account. Great, so far.
On 5 April I was curious because I did not receive the notification from the mint that the two orders had shipped. So, I looked at my US Mint account and the status of the two orders was changed to Backordered with an approximate shipping date 8 2017 (August.. ……really). So much for Early Release.
Today I received an email indicating one of my order had “Shipped”. Which is great. But, here is the reason for this comment. The order that shipped was the one ending in 559X, which was the second order. The first order, 450X, is still has a Backordered status. IS THE PROCESS RANDOM??????

I haven’t been able to find anything specific about General MacArthur’s publicly stated opinions on the Rescission Act. He may have held his tongue or made his opinions known through back channels, realizing that for Congress this had become a purely budgetary decision. I’ll keep looking to see if I can find any public statements.

The Filipinos certainly didn’t think any less of MacArthur, their wartime commander who so famously told them “I shall return.” He kept that promise after three years of continued fighting.

After the war, on April 20, 1947 (seventy years ago tomorrow), President Manuel Roxas of the Philippines made a speech to his fellow veterans of the ASAFFE. He said this about General MacArthur:

“I am sure that our great commander-in-chief during those days, the peerless soldier whose name is a by-word of patriotism and loyalty in the Philippines today, the man who, I am sure, will continue showing his interest in the welfare of this country and of the Filipino veterans, would have wished to be present at this reunion. I refer to General Douglas MacArthur, whom we all love—the man whose heroism brought honor to his country and ours and made possible the participation of the Filipinos in the epic Battle of the Philippines. ”

You can read the full text of his speech, which has a lot of first-hand information, here:

I don’t know if General MacArthur could have prevented the Rescission Act, even with his great popularity at the end of the war. President Truman himself was against the Act, and still it went through. Congress was determined to save money, and they found a way to do it. Of the 66 Allied nations that fought with the United States during World War II, only the Philippines was excluded from U.S. military benefits in this way.

I realize this isn’t on topic with this specific article – but in case anyone is interested…

Regarding the 2017 Congratulations Set –

After seeing multiple posts where people with later order numbers than mine (USM049853xx) while my order remains on backorder, I decided to call the mint.
1) The representative claimed that the set sold out within 2 seconds (I doubt it was THAT fast).
2) She confirmed that people with earlier order numbers are filled first.
3) She assured me that my order WILL be filled and they are just waiting on another shipment from their processor before they take care of the next batch of backorders

I have no clue if this information is accurate, or if they were just trying to get me off the line, but… I hope it helps the narrative.

Thanks everyone for all of your good information over the few years since I found this blog, now I’ll just fade into the background again and continue to soak everything in.

Sorry, I also forgot to add that maybe the larger orders were shipped first, while those with single coins were placed on backorder (but still part of the initial 75,000 orders) while their shipping center dealt with the surprising(?) strong interest in this offering.

I’m guessing the mint tried to surprise the few who normally order this set with a nice little low mintage S-proof without the internet community catching on for a few more days/weeks.

The Mint has stated that orders are not sent out in numeric order. They are sent out in the order that they clear processing. They have not elaborated on what part of the process causes the difference.

I believe they would not/could not elaborate because they have never asked their IT folks to create a diagnostic to explain this slowdown for some orders. My guess is the increment of time it takes to verify credit card details differs from company to company.

Re: order fulfillment for the Congratulations Set, I believe Lee Crane of L&C Coins has stated in last weeks CoinWeek podcast that based on what they were seeing with orders, it appeared the Mint was fulfilling orders based on size of order with the smaller orders shipping first. He said that he isn’t positive about this but that is how it appears based on their sampling.

My father served in the Philippines in WWII after serving in Australia and New Guinea. He enlisted in the Army in the early summer of ’42 after finishing his second year of collage. Being in the Signal Corps, he found himself operating a radio in the treeline at the site and time of MacArthur’s famous beach landing. He used to get excited watching film clips of the event, trying to locate himself in the treeline. Dad told me the story that the landing was recreated for propaganda purposes as the real landing happened the night before. A historian recently claimed this was fiction based on rumors.
After a bombing raid during one night, my Dad was told to repair the General’s phone at his personal quarters. Not thinking the General was there, Dad just walked in and not just was MacArthur in the room but also a large bomb stuck in the wall from the air raid. My Father apologized and saluted. The General directed him to the phone and sensing my Dad’s nervousness over the ‘dud’, chatted with my father to place him at ease as he repaired the phone. Dad never learned whether MacArthur had been in the air raid shelter or had slept in the room during the attack. My father said whatever the controversy was over MacArthur, Dad would never forget the personal comfort he gave a lowly enlisted man.
Of course I bought the $5 dollar MacArthur 5 star generals coin, but my most prized coins are the 1944 1, 5 and 10 cent centavo coins minted in S.F. that my father brought home.

TomP. in Va, I own the unc. gold 5 star Generals coin too. It’s one of my favorites. Your story is detailed and well written, thank you.
In my safe I keep a box of letters written by my uncle who was preparing to leave for the war effort in Europe. In addition to the letters, there are also two telegrams, one stating that my uncle is MIA, the other that he is POW. He survived the ordeal for 20 months before the camp was liberated by the Russians. It really is a miracle that he made it home alive after what the Germans put the prisoners through. I don’t think I will ever be able to express the depth of pride that I have for him and others who give their all.

This is something for Plastic Slab Collectors. Take that Coin out of the Slab and it becomes just a piece of Silver. The value is in the Slab so they need to slab the slab just like they do with GSA CC Morgan Dollars.

I’ve always wanted a GSA Morgan but have never pulled the trigger on one , yet. Maybe one day.

I do like the GSA-CCs – take a look at the
greatcollections.com website for these coins,
keeping in mind that the 1882/83/84 are
available at reasonable cost, and ensure that
they are listed as having both the box and the
certificate. They are sometimes raw which are
the best deal, else mostly graded NGCs,

Did I miss a post regarding the 2016 silver proof sets?
I remember someone(or people) stating that the 2016 silver proof sets were now the low mintage, not 2015, because the mint stopped selling the 2016. They are still on sale at the mint.
What did I miss??
Thank you in advance.
🙂

@Joe M. – Regarding the 2016 Silver Proof Sets, they went to CU (currently unavailable) so the thought was that they were sold out. But they are back now, and no one knows for how much longer. Just one more example of the Mint not letting us know what they are doing. Since they cannot make anymore 2016 proof coins, the questions (of which they know the answer) is how many coins did they make. They can always order more packaging.

If that “Johnson” C&C set is real it’s one of the worst/most misleading listings I’ve ever seen. For starters, it’s not just Johnson, it’s all the C&C’s. Photos are bad, price is unbelievable and only 43 feedback. I’m suspicious…

@cagcrisp, can you help me with that figure? I’m seeing a final, audited mintage of 285,184.

My two Congratulations Sets arrived today, and although I’d read complaints about the packaging, I was still surprised to see how poorly the box was sealed. The coins seem fine, though. A couple of fingerprints were on the capsules, but there was no debris inside.

Happy 4/20 everybody! Was fortunate enough to have 10 lbs of 17RFs arrive today! I must be on the same track as Diana. Order# 52XX placed prior to 12:01. Can’t even complain about the packaging cuz I won’t be opening these puppies, they already gone….whoosh “Congratulations” to all who rolled the dice.

@MNB – The debris in my 2017 proof eagle was in the regular W ASE, not the S ASE congrats set. I ordered some of the regular mint products (eagles, proof sets, etc.) at the same time I ordered the congrats set to save on the postage. The congrats set is fine. It seems odd to call a single coin a set though.

@cagcrisp, thanks! I was worried we had the wrong number in the Red book; this happens occasionally, of course, but we always want to jump on it and correct it ASAP. (The blogs have reminded me how unforgiving book-publishing is. If I type “Unc.” when I mean “Proof” in a blog, I can correct it in seconds. If it goes into print, I’m sadly outta luck. Even if it’s corrected in the next edition, it’s wrong in the existing copies forever.)